Lebanon is yet to witness the formation of a new stable government, two months after parliamentary elections.

Prolonged political crisis, social unrest, pre-existing economic misery, and outbreak of a diplomatic crisis between Lebanon and the Gulf countries have left Lebanon in a debilitated state. Systemic reforms to tackle the economic, political, diplomatic and humanitarian challenges, are the need of the hour.

Disagreements on cabinet positions continue to hamper the formation of a new Lebanese government, even as the country is going through socio-economic turmoil, compounded by the pandemic and the Beirut port blast.

The COVID-19 crisis would severely impact the four countries at the social, political, economic and humanitarian levels, as these states were already facing multi-vector exigencies at the time of the pandemic’s outbreak.

Notwithstanding calls for the establishment of an independent and international commission of inquiry to investigate war crimes committed by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups during the Operation Cast Lead, a legal issue is whether the use of certain weapons by the Israeli forces is in contravention of international law.1

As the dust slowly settles down over the battlefields of South Lebanon and North Israel, the major actors in this tragic drama are now debating ways and means to salvage the long stalled Arab-Israel peace process from the wreckage of war and violence in the region. Israel's 34-day military campaign against Lebanon ended in mid-August with no clear victory to either party.